Future Days
by KEMLEM81
Summary: A sequel to my post finale literati fic It Started With A Text.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N this is a sequel to It Started With a Text. If you haven't already read it, I recommend you do before reading this as events of this story may not make sense without it.**_

 _ **These characters sadly do not belong to me, I'm just enjoying borrowing them again for a while. I hope you enjoy this story.**_

 **Future Days**

"Jess! Get off me!" Rory screamed, shoving his body away from her as she felt her own body connecting with the floor boards beneath her back. The room was just a swiftly filled by the sounds of Jess's laughter as the air rushed out of the now punctured air bed beneath them.

Jess continued to laugh as he watched Rory's face turn from startled to indignant then finally split into a grin of her own as they lay back together on the deflated mattress.

"So, I guess we should go and buy an actual bed today," Jess pulled her closer to him, cuddling her to his side.

"I can't believe I let you convince me this would do in the first place!" Rory jabbed at his chest with an accusatory finger.

Jess just smiled at her indignation and kissed the tip of her finger.

"Hey, it wasn't so bad. It's served us pretty well. Besides, there were practical reasons to our sleeping arrangement if I recall correctly," he reminded her. "We got everything else you wanted."

"We wanted," she corrected him.

"Yes, everything we wanted," he agreed.

"So riddle me this, how was our bed not at the top of the priority list? I mean, it gets more use than anything else in the apartment," Rory sat up, the hard floor beginning to make her back ache.

"You make a good point but at the time we could either get the bed or everything else, we couldn't afford both. Luckily that job of yours has been putting that fancy money stuff into your account and I just got my monthly check from Truncheon so I guess you could say the timing of this puncture was perfect. Well, almost perfect. Might have been nice to finish what we'd started first," Jess raised a hopeful eyebrow.

"I don't have to be in the office until after lunch today so let's go buy a bed now and finish what we started later," Rory bargained.

Jess was up and heading for the shower before Rory had even finished her sentence.

"You're too easy to bribe Mariano!" she called after him.

"Only because you're impossible to refuse," Jess agreed. "Come on. Showering's quicker when done together."

" _Be bad, but at least don't be a liar, a deceiver!_ " Rory quoted Tolstoy to him, all the while following him into the bathroom, knowing full well there'd be nothing efficient about it at all.

" _Whatever our fate is or may be, we have made it and do not complain of it,_ " he quoted in response before pulling Rory under the water with him, wrapping his arms around her waist as he looked deep into her eyes before kissing her.

They stayed under the stream until the water ran cold then towelled themselves off and readied themselves for a morning of bed shopping.

"But I really liked the other one," Rory pleaded.

"But this one is just as nice and on sale," Jess reasoned.

"Don't you want us to have the perfect bed? This is not the perfect bed Jess. This bed wishes it was as pretty and supportive as the magical bed over there by the window. It aspires to be that bed when it grows up. We can not settle for second best here, this is the most important decision of our relationship! Can you really justify that based on a monetary value?" Rory continued, adding a never-fail pout for good measure.

"A magic bed huh? To be honest, I think the magic depends on the occupants not the bed itself. They're both comfortable, they look almost identical to me but this one has a more enticing price tag," he pointed out practically.

"But that one is pretty and blue and look at all the pillows! It'll be like sleeping on a cloud!" Rory countered.

"You do realise that is just for display right?" Jess asked, not quite convinced she did.

"Of course I do," Rory continued to pout.

Jess walked over to the other, more magical, bed and picked up a pillow, squishing it between his hands. He lay back on the bed, enjoying the way the springs supported his body in pretty much exactly the same way the other, cheaper bed's springs also did. After a few moments consideration he let out a sigh.

"Okay Rory, I have a compromise. What if we get the bed that's on sale and with the money we save we can buy the bedding and pillows from this bed?" Jess suggested.

"Really? We can really get all of this?" Rory flopped down onto the bed beside him, sending pillows flying as as she landed.

"If it's what you really want," Jess agreed.

"Well then, I think we've found our new bed!" Rory announced excitedly.

With opportunistic timing, the salesman they'd shooed away earlier suddenly reappeared by their side.

"So I see you've decided to go with this one?" he asked.

"Actually, no," Jess pointed to the sale section. "We're going to take this bedding but we're buying that bed. Also, we were wondering how early it could be delivered - we don't want to be sleeping on the floor tonight."

"I'm sure we can arrange something to prevent that," the salesman assured them.

Rory arrived home from work, kicked her shoes off in the hall and dropped her keys and briefcase off in the lounge before heading into the kitchen in search of the source of the aroma tickling her taste buds. Jess looked up from his laptop as she walked in and smiled.

"Perfect timing, dinner is just about ready," he nodded his head toward the oven and the lasagne bubbling away behind the glass door.

Rory crossed the small eat in kitchen and plonked herself in Jess's lap, wrapping her arms around him.

"Long day?" he asked as she slumped against him.

"Short but tedious," she sighed. "I'm really happy here, with you, even Providence is succeeding in charming me but I'm still having trouble settling into this job."

"Give it time, it's barely been a month, you're still settling in," Jess gently reminded her, rubbing her back.

"I know. I guess in the back of my mind I feel like I took a step backward by taking this job. Maybe I gave up on the campaign trail too easily," she spoke her thoughts aloud.

"Do you really feel that way?" Jess sat up straight in the chair, shifting Rory's weight on his legs, suddenly feeling uneasy.

"Yes, I mean no. I mean, honestly Jess? I don't know."

"I didn't make you choose this job Rory," Jess reminded her.

"Oh Jess, I know that. That isn't what this is about. I love you. I want to be with you. Is that part of the reason why I chose this job? Absolutely. But I was struggling in other ways too, not just being away from you. I think I've just spent so much time chasing a dream that I'm not so sure I even want anymore."

"You're allowed to change your mind Rory."

"I haven't changed my mind about you," she reassured him, kissing the top of his head.

"Good to know. How hungry are you?" Jess asked, changing the subject suddenly.

"I had a muffin with my coffee on the way home so I'm good to wait a while before dinner, although it does smell amazing in here," Rory answered.

Jess prompted Rory to stand then stood up beside her, stepping over to turn the oven temperature down to low before returning to her side.

"Follow me," he held out his hand for her to take and led the way down the short hallway to their bedroom.

"Oh wow! It's gorgeous!" Rory squealed as she took in their new bed, throw pillows and all. "I can't believe I forgot this was happening today! It looks beautiful Jess." She paused mid ramble to kiss him appreciatively before continuing to discover the other changes to their previously bland room. "Oh and the fairy lights! I love them! Oh Jess, how did you find the time to do all this?"

"Didn't take that long," Jess shrugged off her praise.

He was happy to see her smiling, her mood changed from the one she'd arrived home with. This was the way he always wanted her to be but he knew there were always going to be ups and downs and he would try his best to love and support her through both.

"Shall we christen it before or after dinner?" Rory smiled coyly at him from the opposite side of the bed.

"Both works for me."

They met in the middle and made a mess of the magical bed then after they'd fed their other appetite they returned to see what else it could withstand.

 ** _A/N quotes in italics are borrowed from 'Anna Karenina' by Leo Tolstoy_**


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey what's with the rising and shining? It's Sunday! The day of rest. Why are my eyes open?"

"Well technically your eyes are still shut," Jess teased her. "Besides, are they not your words scrawled on the calendar?"

"It's too early for such trivialities," Rory huffed, pulling her pillow over her head.

Jess sat down beside her, slowly pulling the covers back as he held her freshly poured coffee within her olfactory range. He smiled as he counted in his head, waiting for her to register and react.

"7 1/2! That's a new record and a good indication of your stubbornness," Jess announced. "You know, we don't have to do anything today, I was never that keen in the first place as you remember."

"A promise is a promise," Rory sighed, removing the pillow from her face as she sat up in the bed.

Jess passed the hot beverage to her and she took it gratefully, taking a long sip before placing it on the bedside table.

"You're still up for this then?" she asked.

"Sure. How bad can it be?" Jess shrugged.

"I do recall an incident involving a sharpie and mom's newly refurbished floorboards a couple of years ago but I'm pretty sure she's grown out of that stage by now," Rory tried to assure herself as much as Jess.

She'd never spent much time with her half sister but with Boston so close they'd been seeing Gigi and her dad semi regularly and when he'd asked her to babysit she found it hard to turn him down.

"Do you want me to make you some breakfast while you shower or grab something to eat on the way?" Jess offered.

"I'm good with this," Rory lifted her coffee to her lips again. "We can take Gigi out for brunch. That'll fill in a couple of hours. What else are we going to do with a kid all day?"

"You're asking me? How would I know?"

"I guess we will figure it out as we go along," Rory smiled nervously.

"How hard can it be?"

Jess pulled into the car park at Christopher's building shortly after 10am.

"So, this is it," he looked across to Rory as he undid his seatbelt. "Hey, you okay?"

"I'm not cut out for this. Do you remember when the inn caught fire?"

"Yeah, I remember. First time I ever saw a cricket bat up close," Jess smirked at the memory.

"The next day I had to watch all the kids while the adults were having breakfast and it was the worst morning of my life," Rory sighed loudly.

"Come on, it can't have been that bad. I think you're overthinking this," Jess reassured her.

"Oh, believe me, it was that bad. I resorted to sock puppets it was so bad," she confessed.

"Okay," Jess tried to hide his amusement but failed.

"It's not funny Jess! I'm not cut out for babysitting. The last time I babysat was for Apricot and I turned my back for a moment and lost her!"

"First of all, who would call their kid Apricot?! And secondly, did you find her in the end?"

"Babette and yes."

"Babette had a kid?"

"No a kitten."

"So you never actually lost a kid you lost a kitten?"

"Yes but..." Rory attempted to explain.

"Rory, I promise you we are not going to lose your little sister today. Everything will be fine. Now let's get out of that car and go upstairs and get on with it," Jess opened his door and got out before Rory could protest further.

"You promise it'll be okay?"

Jess just pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

"Are you sure you're not a Gilmore, kid?" Jess sat back watching as Gigi inhaled a plate of pancakes having already eaten a full cooked breakfast and drunk half a strawberry milkshake.

"No silly! I'm Gigi Hayden but Aunty Lorelai says I'm an 'ornery," Gigi told him proudly.

"Do you mean honorary? She wasn't wrong!" Jess watched in awe and horrors mentally crossing off any kind of theme park ride from the list of possibilities for the day.

"So Gigi, what would you like to do today? We have a little under 5 hours before Dad will be back," Rory double checked her watch.

"What would you like to do today?" Gigi asked back.

"Well, I don't know Boston very well," Rory admitted.

"Well, I don't know Boston very well," Gigi repeated.

"So maybe we could go to a park or a museum?" Rory suggested.

"So maybe we could go to a park or a museum?" Gigi parroted back again.

"Okay, first rule of the day - stop repeating everything Rory says," Jess gave the little girl a serious look.

"Okay, first rule of the day - stop repeating everything Rory says," Gigi rose to the challenge.

Jess let out a heavy sigh and looked to Rory for backup.

"Gigi, if you continue copying what we say there will be no ice cream later," Jess bargained.

"We're resorting to bribes already?" Rory whispered to him.

"Hey, she may not be Gilmore by blood but she appears to be Gilmore by nature so I thought it was worth a shot," Jess whispered back.

Gigi, who had been watching them whispering to each other must have decided to abandon her annoying little games and instead announced, "I want to go to the beach."

"The beach huh?" Jess repeated, raising a questioning eyebrow in Rory's direction.

"Okay," Rory agreed. "The beach it is." She pulled a map of the Boston area out of her purse and went in search of anything resembling a beach.

"Sure, because nothing says beach like March in Massachusetts," Jess smirked.

"We'll wrap up, it'll be fun," Rory assured him. "This looks like it's not too far to drive," Rory pointed to Wingaersheek Beach on the map.

"Um Rory? That's about an hour's drive away. We've discussed your navigational skills before but I hadn't realised it extended to your map reading abilities also," Jess teased her. He pulled the map across the table to examine it himself. "Here, Castle Island, why don't we go there? You want to see a beach and a castle Gigi?"

"A real castle? Will there be a princess there?" The little girl's eyes widened in excitement.

"There'll be 2 princesses there today," Jess winked at the little girl and Rory almost choked on her coffee.

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Jess Mariano?" she whispered in his ear.

"Just trying to make this day run smoothly," Jess kissed her on the cheek and turned his attention back to Gigi. "You finished your food?"

"Almost," Gigi sucked the last dregs of her milkshake through her straw until it made a satisfying slurping sound that seemed to echo around the half full diner. "Finished!" she announced gleefully.

"Shall we?" Jess left a pile of notes on the table to cover the bill then rose from the booth and held a hand out for each girl to take.

"You're sure you want to go to the beach Gigi?" Rory asked as they stepped out of the warm diner and into the crisp March air.

"I want to see the princesses!" she squealed with enthusiasm and Rory couldn't help but laugh as Jess cringed at the sound.

"Take us to the beach then, oh handsome prince," Rory looped her arm through Jess's.

"As you wish."

"I have never been this tired in my life!" Rory exclaimed as she flopped onto their bed that evening. She kicked her shoes across the room narrowly missing Jess where he stood in the bedroom doorway.

"Too tired to eat?" he asked her.

"All we did all day was eat!" Rory reminded him.

"That is true."

"I don't think I can move," Rory complained.

"Stay there then. I'm going to make myself some toast and then I'll come join you."

"Toast. Toast sounds good. And eggs. And bacon. Do we have any bacon?" Rory's interest in food suddenly returned.

"Last time I checked we did."

"That sure would be nice. I love breakfast food for dinner," Rory beamed a smile across the room to him.

"So you want me to make you breakfast in bed for dinner?" Jess confirmed.

"Wow Jess! What a lovely offer!" Rory exclaimed, sinking her head more deeply into the pillow.

"You'd better still be awake when I bring it into you," he lightly warned her.

"Oh, I will be, I promise. I've got a few emails to prepare to send out tomorrow. The weekend flew by didn't it?" she frowned at the realisation.

"Seems that way," Jess agreed.

Rory was deep in concentration when Jess arrived with her food. He placed her plate on the bedside table and returned to the kitchen to eat his own food at the table. It had been a long and tiring day and he was glad of some time to himself.

He ate in silence, thinking back over the talk he and Rory had had as they'd followed Gigi along the sandy shore. Moving here, living here with Rory, both of them sharing this space every day for the last 2 months, given their tumultuous past, should have been challenging but it wasn't. They moved around each other and blended together in the most natural rhythm. Walking along the beach today, holding her hand while the little blonde girl ran along ahead of them in search of shells he'd had a glimpse into what their future together might possibly look like and it had rattled him. He wasn't ready to get married. Hell, he didn't even know if he believed in the ritual. He knew he loved Rory and would do anything he could to keep her this time around.

Jess put his empty plate in the sink and went to see how Rory was going. Her laptop was discarded on the floor and her plate now sat empty on the bedside table. She had changed into her nightgown and her head was laid back against her pillow but she wasn't asleep yet.

"Hey," Jess leant across the bed to kiss her.

"Thanks for feeding me and for a wonderful day," she told him sleepily as she watched him undress and climb into bed beside her.

"It wasn't so bad after all," Jess agreed.

"Fun even. And no one got lost," Rory sighed contentedly. "We make a good team, you and I."

"You think so?"

"Yeah I really do."

Jess switched off the lamps and lay his head back against his pillow, staring at the patch of light that stole through the gap in the curtain each night to dance on their ceiling.

"Do you see us having a family someday?" he asked quietly, uncertain of where the thought had even come from.

When no response came he rolled onto his side to examine Rory's face for her reaction but found it etched with sleep instead. He let out a heavy sigh of relief then lay awake trying to answer his own question for himself.


End file.
